Frisby



V. C. FRISBY June 30, 1964 PNEUMATIC TIRE AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAMEOriginal Filed Oct. 1, 1958 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG.3.

FIGJ.

FIG. 5.

FIGZ.

FIG.4.

INVENTOR. VINCENT c. FRISBY June 30, 1964 V c FRISBY 3,139,135

PNEUMATIC TIRE AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME Original Filed Oct. 1, 19584 Sheets-Sheet 2 ii s N iii 5 OI R $9! Llc, m R Q Q m W o8 N R: w M a $95 E; 1 i 5 & a & Ego w Ow x k x Q t N m x R N i I l INVENTOR. r I vmczmc. FRISBY \t m R: BY 3 k N Q Q q I I 3,139,135 PNEUMATIC TIRE AND METHODOF MAKING THE SAME ct. 1, 1958 V. C. FRISBY 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 June 30,1964 Original Filed O Ii a 7 INVHVTOR VINCENT C. FRISBY June 30, 1964 v.c. FRISBY C TIRE AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME. 1, 195a PNEUMATIOriginal Filed Oct.

4 Sheets-Sheet 4.

CORD WINDING PLANE III WINDING SPINDLE /AXIS IOI INVENTOR. VINCENT C.FRISBY BY @UJQB United States Patent ice PNEUMATIC TIRE AND METHOD OFMAKING THE SAME Vincent C. Frisby, Hagerstown, Md., assignor, by directand mesne assignments, to Fairchild Stratos Corporation, a corporationof Maryland Original application Oct. 1, 1958, Ser. No. 764,578, nowPatent No. 3,052,429, dated Sept. 4, 1962. Divided and this applicationNov. 1, 1961, Ser. No. 152,376

16 Claims. (Cl. 152354) This invention comprises improvements in highflotation tires of the type used on the landing gear of aircraft.

One object of the invention is to provide a high flotation tire having aflexible tread portion and cord reinforcements incorporated therein andwound tangentially to the bead portions and extending from one side beadportion to the opposite side bead portion.

A more detailed object of the invention is to provide in a tire of thistype continuous cord reinforcement lying in the tread and side walls ina criss-cross pattern.

This application is a division of application Serial No. 764,578, filedOctober 1, 1958 in the names of Ralph Simon, John E. Voorhees, Joseph A.Hoess and Vincent C. Frisby, for High Flotation Landing Gear.

Further objects and advanges of the invention will be apparent from areading of the following description in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a view of the bottom of an aircraft provided according to theinvention with landing gear carrying highfiotation tires;

FIG. 2 is a View in perspective of a typical high-flotation tirearranged according to the invention;

FIGS. 3, 4, and 5 illustrate the tire of FIG. 2 in various conditionsduring folding of the tire;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating the arrangement of thereinforcing cords in the tire of FIGS. 2-5;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken on the lines 77 of FIG. 1 illustratinga portion of an aircraft landing gear arranged according to theinvention;

FIG. 8 is a sectional view illustrating another portion of the landinggear shown in FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a view in axial section taken on the lines 9-9 of FIG. 7;

FIG. 10 is a view in transverse section taken on the lines 101tl of FIG.9; t

FIG. 11 is a transverse sectional view taken on the lines 11-11 of FIG.9 and looking in the direction of the arrows; and

FIG. 12 is a view, partially in section, illustrating the method ofwinding the cord of the tire on the form or mold.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, an aircraft 10 is arranged according to theinvention for operation from unimproved fields by providing it withlanding gear 11, 12 carrying a plurality of high-flotation tires 13.Each of the highflotation tires 13 is of the low-pressure type and issubstantially larger than conventional high-pressure tires so that wheninflated the footprint area is great enough to span the surfaceirregularities, of an unprepared field. The landing gear 11 is arrangedin the usual manner to retract the tires to the storage positions 14,for example, after the aircraft is airborne and the tires have beendeflated and folded, as described hereinafter.

A typical tire 13 arranged to be used with the landing gear of theinvention is shown in FIG. 2. This tire includes two beads 15 and 16 atthe center of its side walls and is arranged, as described below, sothat the concentration of reinforcement cords is high near the beads anddiminishes toward the circumference of the tire. All cords are tangentat the hub or bead of the tire. By this technique, a balanced design inthe tire may be obtained in that the maximum stress in all cordsthroughout the 3 ,139,135 Patented June 30, 1964 tire is about equal forthe most severe tire deflections expected during service. Extending fromselected points 17 at the periphery of one side wall 18 of the tire topoints 17 angularly spaced therefrom on the periphery of the oppositeside wall is a plurality of elastic bands 19, arranged to be stretchedwhenever the tire is in the unfolded condition shown in FIG. 2. Thesebands are utilized in the preferred embodiment of the invention toassist in folding and may extend through the flexible tread portion 20of the tire or across the interior of the tire from one sidewall to theother.

In order to fold the tire 13, the tire beads 15 and 16 are rotatedrelatively and moved together, as indicated by the arrows in FIGS. 3, 4,and 5. In the first stage of the folding operation, illustrated in FIG.3, the tread portion 20 of the tire is twisted into folds 21 and creases22 extending at an angle to the axial and radial planes of the tire.During this stage, the tension of the stretched elastic bands 19 exertedat the points 17 and 17 causes the tire to dimple at these points sothat the folds 21 and creases 22 extend angularly across the treadportion 20 in prepartion for subsequent stages of the folding operation.

Further relative rotation of the beads 15 and 16 while they are broughtcloser together results in a flattening of the tire with the treadportion 20 folded inwardly as illustrated in FIG. 4. If the rotary andaxial motions of the beads are continued, as shown in FIG. 5, the tireforms a collapsed helical bellows and is further reduced in volume asrequired for storage of the tire. By rotating its sides relatively inthis manner, a tire arranged in accordance with the invention can bereduced in volume to less than one-fifth its inflated size and,therefore, can be conveniently retracted for storage in flight.

Alternatively, tension means may be provided to exert a radially inwardforce on the inner face of the tread portion of the tire, at equidistantangularly spaced points. This tension means causes the tire to dimple atthese points upon deflation of the tire. Continued deflation to asubatmospheric pressure causes the dimples to become creases and resultsin the folding of the tire without other external forces being applied.The folding action, including the rotation of one bead relative to theother with their consequent approach toward one another occurs asdescribed above, although external motivation is not required.

Inasmuch as high-flotation tires used in aircraft landing gear aresubjected to exceptionally high stresses in the area near the beads ofthe tire, it is important to provide a high concentration of internalreinforcement cords in this area. At the same time, the weight of thetire must be kept at a minimum. In order to satisfy these conditions,tiresintended for use with the invention are preferably constructed withreinforcement cords arranged in the manner illustrated in FIG. 6 whereinthe rubber coating has been removed from the cords for purposes ofillustration.

In the tire illustrated in FIG. 6, a single reinforcement cord 24 iswound continuously from one side of a hub 25 at one side of the tire tothe opposite side of the hub on the other side of the tire, on asuitable rotatable form or mold by a cord winding arm so that the cordextends at an angle to the radius of the tire along each side wall.Thus, the cord approaches the hub approximately tangentially and forms acriss-cross pattern 26 with the cord segments spreading outwardly fromthe bead in each side wall in a manner similar to the spokes of abicycle wheel. It will be apparent that tires fashioned in this mannerhave extremely high strength in the area of the beads and yet arerelatively light in weight and are highly flexible.

FIG. 12 illustrates schematically the continuous cord method of buildingthe present tire in which the tire is I rate of production.

' 3 constructed upon a form or mold 100 which has the toroidal shape ofthe finished tire. Unlike the procedure used in the past inmanufacturing conventional tires, in which the tire is constructed on abarrel-shaped form and then deformed and cured in a final, differentshape, the tire of the present invention is both constructed on andcured on the same mold. By curing the tire in the shape in which it isconstructed, it is possible to accurately control the placement of cordsin the tire, and thus the inflated shape of the tire, and insure thatthe finished tire will be perfectly symmetrical.

In building the tire, the mold 100 is suitably attached to a cylindricalhollow three-part splined sleeve 101 which is mounted on, and rotateswith, a spindle 102 in the direction indicated by a suitable drivingmotor (not shown), the speed of which can be accurately controlled. Apair of hubs 103, 104 are positioned, one on each of the two outersleeves and spaced apart from the mold a distance such that the straightline distance A of the tire cord when wound into place will equal thecurved line distance B when the hubs 103, 194 are pushed into curingposition (as indicated by broken line), after winding is completed. Themold 100 is constructed of a plurality of separate pieces 1535, 1%, 107,108, 1499 joined together;

for example, by suitable flanged fittings 110 bolted together and theentire mold is attached to the center sleeve 101 as by screws 111 and112. The purpose of the multipart mold is to facilitate the removal ofthe mold from the finished tire after curing. In actual practice, thebolted connections illustrated, holding the separate mold piecestogether, could be replaced with other types of fastenings, as forexample, the familiar trunk-latch type, which would be quicker actingand serve to increase the A cord winding arm 113 is attached to, androtates with, awin-ding spindle 114 which turns on an axis passingthrough the centroid of the tire mold 115. The winding spindle isrotated in the direction indi cated by a suitable motor (not shown).Both the speed of the cord-winding spindle motor, and the motor whichdrives the tire mold, should be controllable in order that the speed ofone with respect to the other can be varied to vary the cord patternlaid down on the mold asmay be desired. A continuous cord 116 is fedthrough the spindle tained by suitable clamps 27 and 28. The inner hub90 is slidably supported on a hollow axle 30 by helical splines 31 whilethe outer hub 29 is fixedly mounted on the axle. The axle 30, which isrotatably supported on the landing gear 11 by suitable roller bearings32, includes a chamber 33 communicating with the interior of the tire 13through openings 34 in the axle.

At the outer end of the axle, a bleed valve 35 comprises an inner sleevemember 36 and an axle end plate 91 aflixed to the clamp 27 as by bolts37 and communicating with the chamber 33. The series of ports 38 in theinner sleeve member 36, normally covered by an outer sleeve member 39,is arranged to open the chamber 33 to the atmosphere when the outersleeve member is moved away from the clamp 27 by axial motion of asupport shaft 40. This shaft is normally urged to the right, as viewedin FIG. 7, by a spring 41 extending from a flange member 42 at the innerend of the shaft to a spider 43 mounted within the hollow axle 30,thereby holding the outer sleeve member 39 against the clamp 27 toretain the valve 35 in the closed condition. Suitable gasketing 44between the outer sleeve member 39 and the inner sleeve member 36 andbetween the outer sleeve member and the clamp 27 is arranged to form anair-tight seal when the valve is closed. Opening of the valve 35 bymotion of the shaft 40 to the left permits air to pass from the tire 13through the openings 34 into the chamber 33 and from there through theports 38 to the atmosphere, as indicated in the drawings by the dasharrows.

When the tire 13 is to be inflated, air from a suitable source ofcompressed air (not shown) is supplied to an inlet port 45 in thelanding gear 11 from which it passes inwardly through radial passages 46in the axle 30 to one end of a tube 47. As indicated by the solid arrowsin the drawings, the air passes from the other end of the tube 47 into achamber 48. and from there through passages 49, illustrated in FIG. 9,and the spider 43 into the chamber 33 which communicates with theinterior of 114 about suitable pulley wheels 117 to the end of the awinding arm 113 and is wound about the mold and the two hubs in a planewhich passes through the rear side of one hub, the centroid of the tiremold, and the opposite side of the other hub, as illustrated in thedrawing FIG. 12.

When winding is complete, the two hubs 103, 194 are disconnected from,and slid inwardly on, the sleeves into the recesses 118 and 119 in themold. The three-part sleeve, with the mold and its winding, is nextremoved from the mold spindle and after the necessary lay-up of rubberover the cord windings, the entire unit is cured. After curing, the moldis disconnected from the sleeve 101 by removing the screws 111 and 112whereupon the center piece of the mold will drop away and provide accessto the inner connections holding the several parts of the mold together.The individual mold pieces may then be removed through the hub of thefinished tire.

It can beseen' that the outer surface of the mold determines the innersurface of thetire during the cure and, when the tire is in use, thehubs upon which the cord is wound become the rim or complete wheel, atleast in certain applications. It may be desirable, when very lowinflation pressures are to be used, to pierce the tire through the beadportion, prior to cure, with a plurality of bolt holes 120 to. providefor the use of suitable clamping means between the beads and the hubs toassure a more air-tight seal between the tire and the hub for preventingthe escape of air by any displacement of the tire beads relative to thehubs.

As best seen in FIG. 7, the tire 13 is mounted on the landing gear 11 byouter and inner hubs 29 and 90 wherein; the bead portions 15 and 16,respectively, are re the tire. preferably under the control of theaircraft pilot, inflates the high-flotation tire 13 to a predetermined,relatively high, pressure, for example, 17 psi, when the aircraft ispreparing for a landing. If desired, this tire inflation can beperformed automatically in connection with the lowering of the landinggear.

As the axle 30 descends toward the ground during a landing with thetread portion of the tire 13 in contact with the ground, the tire beginsto compress and air starts to bleedout, absorbing the shock and reducingthe load factors resulting from the vertical momentum of the aircraft sothat the sinking speed of the aircraft is reduced, which may be greaterthan ten feet per second, for example, to zero. Compression of the tirewithout reducing pressure when it is inflated to a relatively highpressure, such as l7 p.s.i., can cause an undesirable rebound effectunless the tire pressure is substantially reduced while the tire isbeing compressed. Accordingly, a load-sensing strut assembly 50,illustrated in detail in FIG. 8, is joined at its lower end 51 to thelanding gear 11 and at its upper end, through a suitable linkage, to theaircraft and is arranged to operate the valve 35 in the manner describedbelow to decrease the tire pressure in accordance with the loadtransmitted to the aircraft,

Within the load-sensing strut assembly 50, vertical forces aretransmitted from the landing gear 11 through a load-sensing spring 52 toa flange 53 formed on a sleeve 54. A conventional taxi spring 55 anddash-pot damper 56 connect the sleeve 54 with the upper portion 57 ofthe load-sensing strut. Centrally poistioned within the sleeve 54 ashaft 58 is connected at one end to the sleeve and at the other end to abell crank 59, which is pivotally supported on the, landing gear 11 at afulcrum 60. Therefore, downward motion of the sleeve 54 with respecttothe landing gear 11 when a load is transmitted through the strutassembly pivots the bell crank 59.

Compressed air supplied to the inlet port 45,

However, the load-sensing spring 52 is installed with a preload urgingthe flange 53 upwardly against a shoulder 61 in the strut so that thebell crank 59 cannot pivot until the combined force absorbed by the taxispring 55 and the dash pot 56 is equal to the preload.

Taxi spring 55 and dash pot 56 may alternatively be omitted from theload-sensing device. If sleeve 54 were arranged to be attached at itsupper end the aircraft with taxi spring 55 and dash pot 56 absent, theoperation of the air-bleed valve 35 with respect to load on the landinggear 11 would be the same. Taxi spring 55 and dash pot 56 merely makeavailable additional vertical travel in which to arrest the verticalvelocity of the aircraft.

The preload of the sensing spring 52 is selected so that the spring iscompressed when the load transmitted through the strut assembly 58, and,therefore, that applied to the tire 13, is greater than a predeterminedvalue, for example, /2 times the static load to be supported by thetire. The consequent rotation of the bell crank 59 moves the lower end62 of the crank, illustrated in dash lines in FIG. 7, against anon-rotating ring 63 surrounding the axle 30 and drives the ring to theleft as viewed in the drawings. Inasmuch as the ring 63 bears againstring 92 which is joined to the tube 47 by pins 64 extending throughslots 65 in the axle and the tube 47 transmits motion through a wedgeblock 66 and two rollers 66a to a push rod 67 abutting the inner end ofthe shaft 40, strut loads exceeding the preload of the spring 52 drivethe tube 47, wedge block 66, push rod 67 and shaft 40 to the left,compressing the spring 41 and opening the bleed valve 35 to permit airto escape from the tire 13.

In order to monitor the pressure in the tire 13 after it contacts theground and as the axle 30 descends toward the ground, a pressure-sensingunit 68 is mounted within the axle, as shown in FIGS. 7, 9, 10, and 11.Within this unit, a piston 69 and a flexible diaphragm 70 supportedbetween the piston and the inside of the axle 30 are exposed on one sideto the air pressure in the tire and on the other side to atmosphericpressure. A compression spring 71 extending from a sleeve 72, which isaffixed to the axle 30 through a frame 93 and a spider plate 73, to theatmosphere side of the piston 69, opposes the force produced by the tirepressure. When the pressure in the tire falls to a desired minimumvalue, selected to provide optimum tire-rolling characteristics onunimproved terrain, for example, 2 p.s.i., the spring 71 drives thepiston 69 to the left, as viewed in FIGS. 7 and 9, to close the valve 35in the manner described below.

Two cam plates 74 mounted on piston 69 extend through the spider 73 intothe chamber 48 and, as best seen in FIG. 7, each of these platesincludes a cam slot 75 extending horizontally in one portion andinclined upwardly in another portion. Two cam followers 76 mounted onthe side plates 77 of a wedge-block guide member 78 extend into thesecam slots, the side plates 77 also having longitudinal internal slots 79into which the wedge block 66 is guided for axial motion by rollers 80afiixed thereto. In addition, as shown in FIG. 7, 4 coil springs 81 urgethe guide member 78 upwardly Within the chamber 48.

Therefore, when the force of the piston spring 71 is greater than thedifferential pressure loading on the piston 69, the piston 69 is drivento the left and the upwardly inclined portion of the cam slots 75permits the springs 81 to force the wedge-block guide member 78 upwardlyin the chamber 48. This removes the wedge block from its positionbetween the tube 47 and the push rod 67 so that the spring 41 closes thevalve 35 and the valve cannot be opened again until the wedge block isreturned to its position between the members 47 and 67. By appropriateselection of the springs 81, the tirepressure required to return thepiston 69 and the cam plate 74 to the right and, reset the wedge blockmay be set at any desired value. In the preferred embodiment of theinvention, a tire pressure of approximately 12 p.s.i. is necessary toreset the Wedge block. With this arrangement, the tires of an aircrafton the ground may be inflated to any value below 12 p.s.i. for take-offand the bleed valve 35 will remain inoperative even though verticalshocks in excess of the preload of the spring 52 are transmitted throughthe strut assembly 50.

When the aircraft is off the ground, the landing gear 11 automaticallyfolds the tire 13 into a small volume in the manner described above.This operation is initiated by deflating the tire through the hollowaxle 30 and air-inlet port 45. Deflation of the tire collapses aflexible tube 82 mounted within the inner clamp 28 and communicatingwith the interior of the tire, thereby permitting coil springs 83 todisengage latches 84 which hold the clamp in position on the axle. Withlatches 84 thus released, a tire-folding spring 85 urges the inner huboutwardly upon the axle 3t driving the two tire beads 15 and 16together. At the same time, the helical splines 31, onwhich the hub 90is slidably mounted, rotate the hub, thereby twisting the bead 16 withrespect to the bead 15 to fold the tire in the manner illustrated inFIGS. 3, 4, and 5.

In addition, the spring 85 is arranged to twist in the same direction asthe splines while it expands, thus rotating the hub 90 in the properdirection in addition to moving it outwardly. Inasmuch as a very slightair pressure in the tire will overcome the force of the spring 85, thetire is unfolded by inflating it through the inlet port 45. Air pressurewithin the tire drives the hub 90 to the right, separating the beads 15and 16, while the splines 31 rotate the hub 90 in the direction tounfold the tire. When the hub 90 has been driven to its extremeright-hand position, the latches 84 are engaged and thereafter the airpressure in the tubing 82 retains the latches in the locked position,holding the hub securely in position on the axle 30.

In operation, the aircraft pilot prepares the landing gear 11, forlanding on an unimproved field by applying air pressure through the port45 to unfold the tire 13 and inflate it to a pressure greater than thatrequired to reset the wedge block 66, such as 17 p.s.i., for example.When the infiated tire contacts the ground and the force transmitted tothe aircraft through the strut 50 due to the descent of the aircraft onto the ground is greater than the preload of the spring 52, the bellcrank 59 opens the valve 35 by driving the shaft 40 and the push rod 67to the left through the wedge block 66 and the tube 47.

After the pressure in the tire 13 has been reduced to a selected valueappropriate for operation on unprepared terrain as detected by thepressure-sensing unit 68, the piston spring 71 forces the piston 69 tothe left, thus permitting the springs 81 to drive the guide member 78upwardly in the cam slot 75. This removes the wedge block 66 from itsposition between the tube 47 and push rod 67, thereby permitting thespring 41 to drive the shaft 40 to the right, closing the bleed valve35. With the wedge block 66 thus displaced from the linkage between thebleed valve and the bell crank 59, the valve 35 re mains closedregardless of the load transmitted by the load-sensing strut 50.

In order to retract the landing gear after the aircraft has left theground, the air within the tire 13 and the tubing 82 is released throughthe port 45 permitting the springs 83 to disengage the latches 84. Withthe hub 90 thus released from its position on the axle 30, thetirefolding spring 85 drives the hub to the left, rotating it on thesplines 31 to fold the tire in the manner previously described.

Although the invention has been described herein with reference to aspecific embodiment, many modifications and variations therein willreadily occur to those skilled in the art. For example, it iscontemplated that more than one cord will be wound into placesimultaneously by skewing the axis of rotation of the mold so that the.the invention as defined by the following claims.

What is claimed is: 1. A high flotation tire comprising a pair of spacedhubs, each hub having a first side oriented in the same .direction withrespect to the center of the tire, a continuous cord wound over saidfirst sides of said hubs from one first side of one hub to the firstside of the other hub forming a tire reinforcement having a criss-crosspattern in the tire side walls and tread'portion; said cord also iforming a bead adjacent each said hub, and a layer of flexible materialoverlying the reinforcement to form a flexible tread surface, side Wallsand a relatively rigid head for the tire.-

2.'A high flotation tire comprising a pair of spaced hubs, each hubhaving a first side oriented in the same direction with respect to thecenter of the tire, a continuous cord wound over said first sides ofsaid hubs from one first side of one hub to the first side of the otherhub forming a tire reinforcement having a criss-cross pattern in thetire side walls and tread portion; said cord being wound substantiallytangential to a point on each hu'b' as it crosses thereover to form abead adjacent each said hub, and a layer of flexible material overlyingthe reinforcement to form a flexible tread surface, side walls and arelatively rigid bead'for the tire.

3. A high flotation tire comprising a pair of substan tially rigidspaced hubs, a continuous cord wound over said hubs from one side of onehub to the side of the other hub facing in opposite direction from thesaid one side of said one hub and forming a tire reinforcement having acriss-cross pattern in the-tire side walls and tread portion, said cordalso forming a bead adjacent and around each hub, and a layer offlexible material overlying said reinforcement to form a flexible treadsurface, side walls anda relatively rigid bead for the tire.

4. A high flotation tire comprising a pair of substantially rigid spacedhubs, a continuous cord wound over said hubs from one side of one hub tothe side of the other hub facing in the opposite direction from the saidone side of said one hub and forming a tire reinforcement having acriss-cross pattern in the tire side Walls and tread portion, said cordbeing substantially tangential to a point on each hub as it crossesthereover to from a bead adjacent said hub, the tangential point ofcrossing on each hub being spaced substantially 180 from the tangentialpoint of crossing on the other hub as referred to a center line throughthe two hubs, and a layer of flexible material overlying saidreinforcement to form a flexible tread surface, side walls and arelatively rigid head for the tire.

5. A high flotation tire comprising a pair of substantially rigid spacedhubs, a continuous cord wound over 'said hubs from one side of one hubto the side of the other hub facing in the opposite direction from thesaid one side of said one hub and forming a tire reinforcement having acriss-cross pattern in the tire side walls and tread portion, said cordbeing substantially tangential to a point on each hub as it crossesthereover to form a bead adjacent said hub, the tangential point ofcrossing on each hub being spaced substantially 180 from the tangentialpoint of crossing on the other hub as referred to a center line throughthe two hubs, a layer of flexible material overlying said reinforcementto form a flexi- 6. A high flotation tire as in claim wherein saidtensioning means comprise a plurality of elastic members 8 connected tosaid side walls and lying diagonally across the tread portion of thetire.

7. A high flotation tire as in claim 5 wherein said tensioning meanscomprise a plurality of elastic members connected to the inner face ofthe tread portion of the tire to produce forces on said tread faceacting inwardly toward the center of the tire; the forces aiding in thecollapse and folding of the tire when the inflation pressure is removedtherefrom.

8. The method of constructing and curing a tire on the same annularshaped mold comprising the steps of placing a hub substantially at thecenter of the mold on each side thereof and spaced-away from each saidside, winding a continuous cord over a portion of one side of one hub,over the top of the molda nd over a portion of the other hub to form atire reinforcement having a crisscross pattern on the sides and the topthereof, moving said hubs in toward the center of said mold when saidreinforcement is completed, cor'ering said reinforcement with a layer ofuncured elastomer composition, curing said layer of elastomercomposition; and removing said mold from said tire after said curing.

9.'The method of constructing and curing a tire on the same annularshaped mold comprising the steps of placing ahub substantially at thecenter of the mold on each side thereof and spaced away from each saidside,

winding a continuous cord over one side of one hub,

over the top of the mold and over the oppositely facing side of theother hub with said cord being substantially tangential to a point oneach hub as it crosses thereover, the tangential points of crossing oneach hub for a complete turn of the cord over the mold being spacedsubstantially 180 from the tangential point of crossing on the other hubas referred to a center line through the two hubs, rotating said moldaround the center axis thereof as said winding is performed, therebyforming a tire reinforcement having a criss-cross pattern on the sidesand top thereof and a bead adjacent each hub, moving said hubs in towardthe center of said 'mold when said reinforcement is completed, coveringsaid reinforcement with a layer of uncured elastomer composition, curingsaid layer of elastomer composition, and removing said mold from saidtire after said curing.

10. The method of constructing and curing a tire on i the same annularshaped mold comprising the steps of placing a hubsubstantially at thecenter of the mold on each side thereof and spaced away from each saidside, winding a continuous cord about the mold and the two hubs in aplane which passes through the rear side of one hub, the centroid of themold, and the opposite side of the other hub, rotating said mold aroundthe center axis thereof as said Winding is performed to form a tirereinforcement, moving said hubs in toward the center of said mold whensaid reinforcement is completed, covering said reinforcement with alayer of uncured elastomer composition, curing said layer of elastomercomposition; and removing said mold from said tire after said curing.

11; A carcass assembly for a tire comprising a pair of spaced hubs, eachhub having a first side oriented in the saine'direction' with respect tothe center of the tire carcass, and acontinuous cord wound over saidfirst sides of said hubs to form the side walls of a tire carcass with aportion therebetween on which the tire tread is to be located, said:continuous cord being wound from one first side of one hub to the firstside of the other hub thereby forming a carcass having a criss-crosspattern in the carcass side walls and tire tread portion, said cord alsoforming ahead adjacent each said hub.

12. A carcass assembly fora tire comprising a pair of spaced hubs, eachhub having a first side oriented in the same direction with respect tothe center of the tire carcass, and a continuous cord wound over saidfirst sides of said hubs to form the side walls of a' tire carcass witha portion therebetween on which the tire tread is to be located, saidcontinuous cord being wound from one first side of one hub to the firstside of the other hub thereby forming a carcass having a criss-crosspattern in the carcass side walls and tire tread portion, said cordbeing wound substantially tangential to a point on each hub as itcrosses thereover to form a bead adjacent each said hub.

13. A carcass assembly for a tire comprising a pair of substantiallyrigid spaced hubs, and a continuous cord wound over said hubs to formthe side walls of a tire carcass with a portion therebetween on whichthe tire tread is to be located, said continuous cord being wound fromone side of one hub to the side of the other hub facing in the oppositedirection from the said one side of said one hub and thereby forming acarcass having a criss-cross pattern in the carcass side walls and tiretread portion, said cord being substantially tangential to a point oneach hub as it crosses thereover to form a bead adjacent said hub, thetangential point of crossing on each hub being spaced substantially 180from the tangential point of crossing on the other hub as referred to acenter line through the two hubs.

14. The method of constructing a tire carcass for a tire which is to becured on the same annular shaped mold comprising the steps of placing ahub substantially at the center of the mold on each side thereof andspaced away from each said side, winding a continuous cord over aportion of one side of one hub, over the top of the mold and over aportion of the other hub to form a tire carcass having a criss-crosspattern on the sides and the top thereof, andmoving said hubs in towardthe center of said mold after said reinforcement is completed.

15. The method of constructing a tire carcass which is to be cured onthe same annular shaped mold comprising the steps of placing a hubsubstantially at the center of the mold on each side thereof and spacedaway from each said side, winding a continuous cord over one side of onehub, over the top of the mold and over the oppositely facing side of theother hub with said cord being substantially tangential to a point oneach hub as it crosses thereover, the tangential points of crossing oneach hub for a complete turn of the cord over the mold being spacedsubstantially from the tangential point of crossing on the other hub asreferred to a center line through the two hubs, rotating said moldaround the center axis thereof as said winding is performed, therebyforming a tire carcass having a criss-cross pattern on the sides and topthereof and a bead adjacent each hub, and moving said hubs in toward thecenter of said mold after said reinforcement is completed.

16. The method of constructing a tire carcass for a tire which is to becured on the same annular shaped mold comprising the steps of placing ahub substantially at the center of the mold on each side thereof andspaced away from each said side, winding a continuous cord about themold and the two hubs in a plane which passes through the rear side ofone hub, the centroid of the mold, and the opposite side of the otherhub, rotating said mold around the center axis thereof as said windingis performed to form a tire carcass, and moving said hubs in toward thecenter of said mold after said reinforcement is completed.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

1. A HIGH FLOTATION TIRE COMPRISING A PAIR OF SPACED HUBS, EACH HUBHAVING A FIRST SIDE ORIENTED IN THE SAME DIRECTION WITH RESPECT TO THECENTER OF THE TIRE, A CONTINUOUS CORD WOUND OVER SAID FIRST SIDES OFSAID HUBS FROM ONE FIRST SIDE OF ONE HUB TO THE FIRST SIDE OF THE OTHERHUB FORMING A TIRE REINFORCEMENT HAVING A CRISS-CROSS PATTERN IN THETIRE SIDE WALLS AND TREAD PORTION; SAID CORD ALSO FORMING A BEADADJACENT EACH SAID HUB, AND A LAYER OF FLEXIBLE MATERIAL OVERLYING THEREINFORCEMENT TO FORM A FLEXIBLE TREAD SURFACE, SIDE WALLS AND ARELATIVELY RIGID BEAD FOR THE TIRE.